What river system does the Mackenzie River belong to? Mackenzie (river)

Mackenzie

Mackenzie River Delta
Characteristic
Length
Pool

1,805,200 km²

Water consumption
Source
- Coordinates
Estuary
- Coordinates
A country

Canada Canada

Region
K:Rivers in alphabetical order K:Water bodies in alphabetical order K:Rivers up to 5000 km in length Mackenzie (river) Mackenzie (river) K:River card: correct: Mouth/Basin

Is a navigable river, the length of the navigable routes of the entire river system Mackenzie 2200 km - from Waterways on the Athabasca River to the port of Taktoyaktuk on the coast of the Arctic Ocean. The largest settlements: Aklavik, Inuvik, Fort Norman, Fort Providence and the oilfield center of Norman Wells.

Story

It was discovered and first passed by A. Mackenzie from June 29 to July 14, 1789. Originally called a river Disappointment(English) Disappointment, "Disappointment" or "Dissatisfaction" ).

Tributaries

  • R. Karkaju
  • R. Ruth
  • R. Mountain
  • R. Hare Indian

Hydrography

The source of the Mackenzie River is considered to be the Great Slave Lake; the river basin also includes the large Canadian lakes Woollaston, Clare, Athabasca and Great Bear. The last lake is connected to the river through the Bolshaya Medvezhya tributary. The average water flow at the mouth of the river is ≈10,700 m³/s, which puts the river in second place among the rivers of North America after this indicator.

The river valley is formed by strata of alluvial and fluvio-glacial sediments, is heavily swamped, and covered with spruce forest.

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Notes

Excerpt characterizing the Mackenzie (river)

Bolkhovitinov first reported in detail everything that was ordered to him.
“Speak, speak quickly, don’t torment your soul,” Kutuzov interrupted him.
Bolkhovitinov told everything and fell silent, awaiting orders. Tol began to say something, but Kutuzov interrupted him. He wanted to say something, but suddenly his face squinted and wrinkled; He waved his hand at Tolya and turned in the opposite direction, towards the red corner of the hut, blackened by images.
- Lord, my creator! You heeded our prayer...” he said in a trembling voice, folding his hands. - Russia is saved. Thank you, Lord! - And he cried.

From the time of this news until the end of the campaign, all of Kutuzov’s activities consisted only in using power, cunning, and requests to keep his troops from useless offensives, maneuvers and clashes with the dying enemy. Dokhturov goes to Maloyaroslavets, but Kutuzov hesitates with the entire army and gives orders to cleanse Kaluga, retreat beyond which seems very possible to him.
Kutuzov retreats everywhere, but the enemy, without waiting for his retreat, runs back in the opposite direction.
Historians of Napoleon describe to us his skillful maneuver at Tarutino and Maloyaroslavets and make assumptions about what would have happened if Napoleon had managed to penetrate the rich midday provinces.
But without saying that nothing prevented Napoleon from going to these midday provinces (since the Russian army gave him the way), historians forget that Napoleon’s army could not be saved by anything, because it already carried in itself the inevitable conditions death. Why is this army, which found abundant food in Moscow and could not hold it, but trampled it underfoot, this army, which, having come to Smolensk, did not sort out the food, but plundered it, why could this army recover in the Kaluga province, inhabited by those the same Russians as in Moscow, and with the same property of fire to burn what they light?
The army could not recover anywhere. Since the Battle of Borodino and the sack of Moscow, it already carried within itself the chemical conditions of decomposition.
The people of this former army fled with their leaders without knowing where, wanting (Napoleon and each soldier) only one thing: to personally extricate themselves as soon as possible from that hopeless situation, which, although unclear, they were all aware of.
That is why, at the council in Maloyaroslavets, when, pretending that they, the generals, were conferring, presenting different opinions, the last opinion of the simple-minded soldier Mouton, who said what everyone thought, that it was only necessary to leave as soon as possible, closed all their mouths, and no one , even Napoleon, could not say anything against this universally recognized truth.
But although everyone knew that they had to leave, there was still the shame of knowing that they had to run. And an external push was needed that would overcome this shame. And this push came at the right time. This was what the French called le Hourra de l'Empereur [imperial cheer].
The next day after the council, Napoleon, early in the morning, pretending that he wanted to inspect the troops and the field of the past and future battle, with a retinue of marshals and a convoy, rode along the middle of the line of troops. The Cossacks, snooping around the prey, came across the emperor himself and almost caught him. If the Cossacks did not catch Napoleon this time, then what saved him was the same thing that was destroying the French: the prey that the Cossacks rushed to, both in Tarutino and here, abandoning people. They, not paying attention to Napoleon, rushed to the prey, and Napoleon managed to escape.

Expeditions and finds

A. Mackenzie spent 1791 in Scotland, where he studied topography and geography, preparing for a new big journey to find river routes leading from Athabasca to the Pacific Ocean. Returning to Canada in 1792, he walked from the river. St. Lawrence, using dry and river routes, to Lake Athabasca.

He chose for study a large river (Peace River), which flows from the west into Slave at its exit from the lake (at 59 ° N). He hoped that by going up this river he could get close to the Pacific Ocean. But the valley turned southwest, then straight south. So he sailed up the river until he reached 56° N. w. It was late in the year, and Mackenzie stopped for the winter near the mouth of the Smoky River.

At the beginning of May 1793, when the river opened up, A. Mackenzie with nine companions, including the “English Chief,” continued sailing up the Peace River in a large but very light Indian canoe. He walked about another 250 km and, after going around a 20 km long canyon, got back into the canoe. Having climbed the river to another canyon, cut by it in the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains, and dragging the boat through the canyon, the travelers reached 56 ° N. latitude, 124°w. d. two rivers flowing in exactly opposite directions - northern (Finley) and southern (Parsnip); they made up the Peace River here. Where to go - north or south?

After consulting with the local Indians, A. Mackenzie chose the southern direction and climbed the river. Parsnip to its source near 54° 30" N and 122° W. After reconnaissance, it turned out that in the south, behind a short and convenient portage, some river flows to the west, which brought it to another large and navigable river (Fraser) flowing behind mountain range in a southerly direction. He hoped to go down it to the Pacific Ocean and began rafting, overcoming the rapids. But after several tens of kilometers, the Indians warned him that further navigation was impossible because of the rapids. Then A. Mackenzie returned to the mouth of the river. West Road (100 km upstream) and, accompanied by local Indians, traced it to the source. He crossed the river on rafts. Dean, and then turned south and, passing through a small valley surrounded by snow-capped mountains, the peaks of which were hidden in the clouds, reached a new short river (Bella Coola). On Indian canoes, the detachment descended to its mouth (at 52 ° 30 "N), it flowed into the short arm of the fjord. In order to dispel all doubts, A. Mackenzie moved further to the southwest, two days later he reached the Pacific Ocean, to Queen Charlotte Sound, and made the inscription on the rock: "Alexander Mackenzie, from Canada, by land, July 22, 1793."

At the first crossing North America he traced the entire river. Peace River (1923 km), crossed the Front and Coast Ranges of the Rocky Mountains, opening between them the Inland Plateau and the upper section of the river. Fraser. In September 1793, A. Mackenzie returned the same way to Lake Athabasca, and after wintering he arrived in 1794 on the river. St. Lawrence, having completed the second crossing of the mainland and having traveled more than 10 thousand km in both directions.

Discovery of the Mackenzie River

Scotsman Alexander Mackenzie moved to Montreal as a young man and entered the service of the fur company, which was soon absorbed by the North-West Company. In 1787, he, already an experienced agent, was sent to Lake Athabasca to replace P. Pond. They spent the winter together, and A. Mackenzie, with the participation of P. Pond, drew up a plan for further exploration of the “Cook River”.

In 1788, on behalf of A. Mackenzie, his cousin Roderick Mackenzie built near the mouth of the river. Athabascan Fort Chipewayan (moved to the mouth in 1804), where both wintered. On June 3, 1789, leaving Roderick as temporary commander of the fort, A. Mackenzie set out with 12 companions on a river trip in birch bark canoes.

The guide of the expedition was a Chipewyan Indian nicknamed “English Leader”, who took part in S. Herne’s campaign to the Arctic Ocean. On June 9, they reached Great Slave Lake, almost completely covered with ice, only a narrow strip was visible near the shore clean water. Soon, under the rain and strong winds, the ice began to break, but so slowly that it took about two weeks to cross by canoe. A. Mackenzie spent another six days searching for a further path: north shore Great Slave Lake is very dissected, especially in the northwest, where the river. The Marian flows into the long, narrow North Arm Bay. Only on June 29 did he find a mighty stream flowing from the western corner of the lake at the latitude of the “Cook River” and carrying its waters to the west. After a few days of sailing, A. Mackenzie met three groups of Indians who told him horror stories about the enormous length of the river, the impossibility of finding food in the lower reaches - and he barely managed to persuade his guides not to leave him.

350 km from the lake, the river turned sharply to the north and entered the mountainous region. On the left side, heights approached it (Mt. Mackenzie), on the right - other heights (Mount Franklin), which are at 65 ° N. w. interrupted by a wide valley of deep water eastern tributary. A. Mackenzie did not explore this stream, which led him away from the main goal. At 67° N. w. main river came out into the lowlands, but in the west one could see mountains extending in a meridional direction (Richardson Mountains).

On July 10, A. Mackenzie wrote: “It is absolutely clear that this river flows into the Great North Sea.” For three more days he descended along the river flowing in the low banks, from which numerous branches branched off on both sides. Instead of the Indian villages that had previously been occasionally found on its banks, here and there the dwellings of the Eskimos were visible. On July 13, at 69°30" N, from a hill on one of the delta islands, the traveler saw a stripe in the west open sea- Mackenzie Bay of the Beaufort Sea, and to the east - an ice-clogged bay (maybe Eskimo Lake). At night, with the sun not setting, he watched the tide, and in the morning he saw whales playing in the water in the western bay. Undoubtedly, he reached the Arctic Ocean. But, since he did not trace the adjacent sections of the sea coast in both directions, the veracity of his message was doubted for a long time. A. Mackenzie himself justified himself by saying that his provisions were running out. On July 16 he turned back; going up the river, naturally, took up a lot of more strength, and the squad moved twice as slow. Six days later, A. Mackenzie learned from the Indians he met that eight or nine years ago, far to the west, the Eskimos had contact with white people who came on large ships and exchanged iron for skins. It is possible - Canadian historical geographer Roy Daniells believes that these were ships of Russian industrialists, and the meeting supposedly took place in the vicinity of Cape Barrow, the northernmost tip of the Alaska Peninsula (71°23"N, 156°12"W .d.). In our historical and geographical literature there is no information or just mention of this outstanding achievement of domestic sailors.

A. Mackenzie completed his campaign to the Arctic Ocean on September 12, 1789 at Fort Chipewayan, having covered almost 5 thousand km in 102 days. The great stream flowing from Great Slave Lake and flowing into the Beaufort Sea was named the river. Mackenzie.

North America and the pride of Canada is the Mackenzie River. Navigable in summer, it becomes an ice route in winter, which is quite unusual. The hidden strength and power of this natural wonder, which contributes 11% of the total drainage of the Arctic Ocean, arouses interest and respect. Plan and description of the Mackenzie River, as well as its economic importance- the topic of this article.

History and names

The river is named after the traveler and scientist Alexander Mackenzie, who rafted down it in 1789. Before this, the river was called Dissapoint, which means “disappointment.” And although Alexander Mackenzie is considered the first white man to open a river route to the ocean, it is reliably known that before him, the English trader Samuel Herne (1745-1792) had already carried out river rafting to the coast of the Northern Ocean. The Northwestern Fur Company allowed Mackenzie to organize an expedition to find a waterway to the Pacific Ocean along the rivers of North America. Mackenzie was disappointed - the river turned north, and the path was open to the Arctic Ocean. Apparently this is what upset the researchers so much that they called the river “disappointment”. The Mackenzie expedition in 1789 was associated with the founding of Fort Chipewyan on the Athabasca River.

When the river became the Mackenzie

On July 13, 1789, Alexander Mackenzie went on an expedition to the coast of the Arctic Ocean, and it was he who made the first description of the Mackenzie River. The explorer will write in his diary that the path to the Pacific Ocean has not been found, but the whales playing in the bay and the timely ebb and flow of the tides make it clear that this is the Arctic Ocean. The Arctic explorer Englishman John Franklin, having gone with his expedition to this river in 1826, named the river, the mountains, and the bay after the disappointed Scottish trader Mackenzie.

Hydrography of the Mackenzie River

The giant of the Canadian North, with its tributary the Athabasca, begins in the Rocky Mountains of the Cordillera, quickly sweeps across the Great Plains and flows into the lake of the same name. It flows out of the lake under the name Slave River, and is joined by the Peace River and carries its waters into the Great Slave Lake. A river called the Mackenzie flows out of it. The layout of the Mackenzie River is complex and confusing. Its basin covers an area of ​​1,804 thousand kilometers, its width is 80 kilometers, and its length is up to 160 kilometers. Situated from Hudson Bay to the Cordillera ranges. The total length of the river, including tributaries, is 4241 kilometers and puts it 13th in the world. It is classified as an Arctic source and is fed by snow and rainfall. In winter, the ice cover reaches 2.5 meters and from October to early June the river is covered with ice.

Mackenzie River Pingo

Surprising phenomena even for permafrost are earthen hills with a core of ice that are located in the riverbed. In summer, the ice inside them melts, but water cannot break through. When ice freezes, it expands and pushes the earth to the surface. It is in the Mackenzie Delta that the largest concentration of pingos in the world is observed - there are more than 1,500 of them.

People on the river

Indigenous peoples have lived on the coast since ancient times. Today the most major cities are the industrial Ford Norman and Ford Providence, the tourist Aklavik and Inuvik, and the oil-producing Norman Knot. The unusually beautiful scenery of the coastline attracts lovers of canoes and boat trips. Hiking is only available to the most daring tourists - there are many grizzlies and American bears in the forests.

Agronomic importance of the Mackenzie River

The length of the channel suitable for navigation is about 2200 kilometers. Fluctuations in water levels are suitable for the use of the river in the energy industry. In the upper reaches of the Mackenzie River, the Bennett Dam (1968) was built - one of the largest in the world, it is not the only one in the cascade of dams. In addition to generating electricity, the dams prevent flooding and make it possible to develop agriculture in the southern reaches.

River basin biology

The river basin is represented by forests and tundra, and in many respects heavily wetlands. Wetlands make up about 18% of the basin's area and serve as nesting and migration sites for North American birds. About 93% of the basin area is untouched by man. There are about 53 species of fish in the river, including endemic species. Interestingly, the endemics are genetically related to similar Missouri River species, which may indicate a shared basin of these rivers in the past.

Ecology and biotope

The river basin is an important ecosystem for migratory birds. It is here that the intersection of four migration routes and the transit point for North American birds is located. In autumn their numbers reach a million individuals.

The river delta is rich natural gas, oil, uranium, tungsten, gold and diamonds, the active mining of which does not have the best effect on the ecosystem.

Transport route and ecotourism center

In the upper reaches of the river, timber harvesting is carried out and in the summer, entire trains of barges move along the river. The peculiarity of the river is its winter use. It connects the mainland and the coast in the form of an ice route. People travel along it by cars, snowmobiles and dog sleds.

Only 1% of Canadians live in the Mackenzie River basin, of which 36% are Indians, and the rest are descendants of the British, Scots, French, Germans, Russians and Ukrainians. The city of Inuvik ranks first among the Arctic settlements visited by tourists. It is the center of indigenous Inuit culture and the start of many ecotourism routes.

The Mackenzie River is great river North America. In terms of average water consumption, it is not inferior to anyone in North America except Mississippi. Also, the river found something unusual economic use: In addition to a shipping canal in summer, its bed is also used as an ice road in winter.

River length: 4,240 km.

Drainage basin area: 1,800,000 sq. km. This includes the Slave, Peace and Athabasca river basins, which flow into Great Slave Lake). In addition to the Great Slave Lake, the Mackenzie River basin also includes a number of large lakes in Canada: Wollaston, Claire, Athabasca, and Great Bear.

Characteristics of the Mackenzie River

Where does it occur: The Mackenzie rises from Great Slave Lake. Thanks to this, the Mackenzie can be compared to the Neva River, its source is Lake Ladoga. The direction of the river flow is predominantly northwestern. The river flows through a heavily swampy valley. Its banks are covered with dense spruce forest. By the nature of the flow, the Mackenzie is a flat river. It flows into the Gulf of the Botfort Sea of ​​the Arctic Ocean, forming a delta with an area of ​​12,000 km. sq. In general, half of all Canadian rivers flow into the Arctic Ocean.

Nutrition: mixed, with a predominance of rain and snow feeding methods.

River mode: characterized by spring-summer floods caused by melting snow. The average water flow at the mouth is 10,700 m3/s. This figure could be higher, but the Rocky Mountains to the west greatly reduce the influence of the Pacific Ocean as a water source.

Freezing: Freeze-up lasts from September, sometimes from October to May. In the lower reaches, the opening occurs a little later - in early June.

Cities: Aklavik, Inuvik, Fort Norman, Fort Providence and the oil industry center of Norman Wells.

Main tributaries: Liard, Arctic Red River, Peel, Great Bear.

The river is navigable for 200 km, up to Waterways on the Athabasca River. Even further upstream from its source, the Athabasca River flows into Great Slave Lake.

Interesting facts:

1) The river was discovered and crossed in 1789 by the Scottish traveler A. Mackenzie. The first name of the river was Disappointment, which translated from English means “Disappointment”. The river probably did not make a very good impression on the researcher.

2) In the river delta, not far from Canada’s northernmost settlement of Tuktoyaktuk, there is a whole collection of hydrolaccolith or pingo. Pingos are cone-shaped mounds of gravel and other soil elements that have been literally forced to the surface by the pressure of the ice that lies below. These hills can reach 40 meters in height and 300 meters in width.

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Mackenzie Danube River, Mackenzie Volga River
1738 km

Mackenzie(English and French Mackenzie, slave Deh Cho - “ big river») - largest river Canada and the entire American north with a length of 1738 km. Named after Alexander Mackenzie, who discovered it.

Mackenzie in winter

It is a navigable river; the length of the navigable routes of the entire Mackenzie river system is 2200 km - from Waterways on the Athabasca River to the port of Taktoyaktuk on the coast of the Arctic Ocean. The largest settlements are Aklavik, Inuvik, Fort Norman, Fort Providence and the oilfield center of Norman Wells.

  • 1. History
  • 2 Tributaries
  • 3 Hydrography
  • 4 Notes

Story

It was discovered and first climbed by A. Mackenzie from June 29 to July 14, 1789. It was originally called the Disappointment River.

Tributaries

  • R. Drank
  • R. Liard
  • R. Big Bear
  • R. Arctic Red River
  • R. Karkaju
  • R. Ruth
  • R. Mountain
  • R. Hare Indian

Hydrography

Mackenzie River Basin

The source of the Mackenzie River is considered to be the Great Slave Lake; the river basin also includes the large Canadian lakes Woollaston, Clare, Athabasca and Great Bear. The last lake is connected to the river through the Bolshaya Medvezhya tributary. The average water flow at the mouth of the river is ≈10,700 m³/s, which puts the river in second place among the rivers of North America after the Mississippi. The relatively small water content of the Mackenzie is explained by the blocking effect of the Rocky Mountains in the west, which reduce the influence Pacific Ocean in the lower part of its catchment.

The Mackenzie, like more than half of Canada's rivers, belongs to the Arctic Ocean basin. Arctic rivers are fed mainly by snow and rain. In the central and northern regions of the country, rivers and lakes are covered with ice for 5 to 9 months. The Mackenzie freezes in September - October, opens in May, and in the lower reaches - in early June; snow and rain food; spring-summer flood.

The river valley is formed by strata of alluvial and fluvio-glacial sediments, is heavily swamped, and covered with spruce forest.

Notes

  1. 1 2 Atlas of Canada.
  2. Mackenzie (river) - article from the Great Soviet Encyclopedia.

Mackenzie Amazon River, Mackenzie Volga River, Mackenzie Danube River, Mackenzie Maritza River

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